Standing almost at the end of the United Nations Decade for Human Rights Education (1995-2004), the Osaka Liaison Conference for the Universal Declaration of Human Rights is to hold the Osaka Assembly and Symposium on Human Rights Education to look back at what has been done so far and what must be addressed in the future. The Assembly and Symposium provide opportunities for interaction not only between promoters of human rights education in Osaka and foreign expert invitees from a variety of sectors, but also amongst foreign experts themselves. The Osaka Liaison Conference expects the Assembly and Symposium to generate a significant drive to keep the momentum of human rights education promotion led by the United Nations Decade for Human Rights Education (1995-2004).

Osaka Assembly December 10, 2003

--What has and has not been achieved under the United Nations Decade for Human Rights Education? --　

Plenary:

Keynote address by Mr. Kenzo Tomonaga, Secretary-General of the Osaka Liaison Conference for the Universal Declaration of Human Rights

Sectoral meetings:

A: Human Rights Education through Community Organizing

Guest speaker: Ms. Jane Austria, community organizer for the “Justice and Peace Program, Convent of the Holy Spirit Sisters” NGO in the Philippines
Local speaker: Mr. Nobuo Hirose, President of the Japan’s “DASH” NPO
Coordinator: Ms. Mariko Akuzawa, Associate Professor of the Himeji Institute of Technology

B: Human Rights Education as Corporate Social Responsibility

Guest speaker: Dr. Michael Reiterer, Deputy Head of Delegation/Minister of European Union, Delegation of the European Commission in Japan
Local speaker: Mr. Yoshiaki Koto, Osaka Industrial Federation of Dowa and Human Rights Issues
Coordinator: Mr. Seiji Nakamura, Buraku Liberation and Human Rights Research Institute

C: Human Rights Education by Local Governments

Guest speaker: Dr. Hans Hesselmann, Head of the Human Rights Office in Nuremberg City, Germany
Local speaker: Mr. Koichi Tatsuno, Osaka Prefectural Government Human Rights Office
Coordinator: Mr. Kenzo Tomonaga, Buraku Liberation and Human Rights Research Institute

D: Human Rights Education in Schools

Guest speaker: Mr. Jefferson Plantilla, Senior Researcher of the Asia-Pacific Human Rights Information Center
Local speaker: Ms. Makiko Shimpo, Osaka Prefecture Association of Human Rights Education Study
Coordinator: Mr. Yasumasa Hirasawa, Professor of the Osaka University Graduate School of Human Science

Osaka Symposium December 11, 2003

--What is desired for Human Rights Education in the 21st Century?--

Speakers:

Ms. Jane Austria, Dr. Michael Reiterer, Dr. Hans Hesselmann, Mr. Jefferson Plantilla and
Mr. Minoru Mori, Professor of Osaka Kyoiku University
Ms. Mariko Akuzawa, Associate Professor of the Himeji Institute of Technology

* Ms Felisa Tibbitts, who was invited as a speaker of the Sectoral Meeting D along with the Symposium, was unable to attend due to unexpected illness.